Zoe Saldana Goes Green For Marvel’s “Guardians Of The Galaxy’

Mark Deming

Movie TalkApril 3, 2013

Zoe Saldana is already a favorite among sci-fi fans, and it looks like she'll be putting that reputation to good use in her next project.

It was announced Wednesday that Saldana is in talks to co-star in the screen adaptation of "Guardians of the Galaxy," another comic book project from Marvel Studios. Saldana is in the running to play Gamora, a green-skinned warrior who is the last survivor of a humanoid race all but wiped out by their enemies the Badoon. Gamora will be roaming the outer reaches of space in the film, and given Saldana's experience aboard a starship in "Star Trek" and as a blue-skinned alien in "Avatar," she seems made to order for this role.

James Gunn, who directed the cult-favorite horror flick "Slither" and the offbeat super-hero tale "Super," will be behind the camera for "Guardians of the Galaxy." Saldana is the third actor to be attached to the project so far, with Chris Pratt (of "Parks and Recreation" and "Zero Dark Thirty") confirmed as Star-Lord, and Dave Bautista (the WWE fighter who also appeared in "The Man With The Iron Fists") cast as Drax The Destroyer.

While information is still slim about the movie (not uncommon in the early stages of Marvel projects), "Guardians of the Galaxy" is one of the more eccentric stories in the Marvel Universe, with characters including Groot, a huge half-man half tree, and Rocket Raccoon, a mutant critter with a sharp personality and an itchy trigger finger.

Joss Whedon, who spilled the beans about Gunn directing "Guardians" last year, praised the filmmaker and his offbeat perspective on the characters and their world. "He has a very twisted take on it, but it all comes from a real love of the material so you know he’s going to make the Raccoon… It’s going to be hard for the humans to keep up," Whedon said.

If Whedon is to be trusted, Saldana is in for a wild ride but is in good hands. Shooting on "Guardians of the Galaxy" is expected to begin in June, and the film is scheduled to open in theaters August 1, 2014.